For the third time in four years, our family hosted a child from New York City for a week this summer. It’s a week full of fun, new experiences for everyone, and even after hosting the same child each year, I’m always surprised at the new things our FAF child, Katelynn, learns, and we learn as well.

I decided we should try the Fresh Air Fund experience three years ago after reading a newspaper article. Open your home for a week to an inner city child, with the goal of providing that child with an experience they’ll never forget.

I thought it was a wonderful idea – and I was also excited about the possibility that my own two children, who were 4 and 6 at the time, would learn a thing or two as well.

That first year, Katelynn was 7. She struggled with shutting the door when she went into and out of the house – we wondered if perhaps the doors in her apartment building close automatically. She was curious about the concept of a mailbox at the end of the driveway. She needed to be reminded to fasten her seatbelt when we traveled in the car, since she rarely traveled that way.

There were squabbles, as is typical, usually about what the kids wanted to do together. Katelynn wanted to swim. We have a pool, and she never cared if the water was cold. Meanwhile, my daughter would jump in for five minutes and call it a day.

My daughter likes her alone time. She likes to read. She became frustrated occasionally when she was pestered to play this game or that game with Katelynn. It became tiring to share a room.

Fast forward three years. Katelynn is 10, a year older than Lauren and three years older than Owen. Not much has changed. She still forgets to close the door. She still complains when we’re in the car for a long time – she’s still figuring out that we have to drive a half-hour to get anywhere. She’s still a tall-tale teller (I have to constantly remind Lauren to let it go). And she still gets grumpy when the kids need a break from her.

Each year after Katelynn visits, we tell ourselves we’re not doing it again. The week is exhausting – physically, mentally and emotionally. And at the end of the week, we always question whether it was worth it.

But we’re all more enlightened after the week is over. This year, Katelynn learned to ride a bike without training wheels for the first time, yelling, “I’m doing it! I’m doing it!” over and over again.

We were able to watch her excitement while she went down the water slides at Six Flags, when she tasted the ice cream we made with the raspberries we picked ourselves, and when one of our chickens hatched her first egg.

And my children learned that while this life is all they know, they need for nothing. My daughter learned how to share her room, and all of her stuff, for a week. Both children learned how to compromise. Sure, they would rather do something else than go on yet another bike ride with Katelynn, but they did it anyway.